Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-01-28

A.Po VETS astir In good time the
next morning, and. after coffee and hard
citing incidents occurred before our lines
fairly got in range Of the enemy's works.
A mounted officer, with glass, thought he
observed some indications of a reconnois-
sance in the neighborhood of a large sugar.
house, far up the road. A section Of one
OF our batteries was brought up to the head
OF our column and she'll sent screechinp
over it. A dozen men were seen. by the
glass, to run out of the building, mount
| their horses. which were fastened near by.
and ride off at a gallop.
Further on, round-shot was sent ut
some suspicious appearances, aud plainly
saw 1t strike large house. When our col
umn reached this place there was q halt,
and was one of several who entered the
house to observe the effects of this shot.
They were melancholy to behold. The
missile had crashed completely through
! the building, just under the second floor,
| tearing off bushels of lath and plastering,
| and scattering them over the long table
| which had been set for dinner. One of
the negroes told us that the family were
just seated ut the board when this unwel-
come messenger came, and that they all
| fled in panic across the bayou.
BY the middle of this afternoon it was
| evident that We were getting upon danger
GUS ground. We advanced slowly, often
| In line; We often halted, for cautious
| Reconnaissance; our gunboats in the bayou
| threw an occasional shell. Before sunset
! we were advancing only in line, soaring up
queer flight of rabbits, rats, and snakes
before us. Never having been in action,
though had been eighteen months in the
service, and not then understanding the
situation as 1 did afterward, these move-
ments somewhat puzzled me, while it was
very picturesque sight to see the brigade
which had the advance moving by several
regimental lines over the fields. banners
flying, and musket- barrels shining. It
looked decidedly pretty, and l thought it
only needed the burst and swell Of military
music to make it very like what is called
1.-THE po1np and circumstance of glorious
war" The sun was down, and twilight
had come on while this march in line was
proceeding. All of q sudden there came
the roar Of two cannon in quick succession,
the balls flying high overhead; and at the
signal the enemy opened on us from swamp
to bayou. From the noise, the smoke and
the dust that followed, should say that
there were fully twenty-five guns engaged
on their side. We were we'll in range; in
fact, believe that had they opened on us
half On hour sooner they would have done
better execution. As it was, as it generally
is with distant artillery fire, most of their
missiles few high overhead.
One-half of all the error and confusion
that has arisen out of the discussions re-
lating to battles of this war proceeds from
the fact that soldiers will persist in at
tempting to describe what they never saw
nor heard personally. The area Of almost
any battle which the man with the musket,
his Captain, or even his Colonel, can see
is very limited one, and SO it was at Bis
land. The things thatI saw and heard
there will describe; those that neither
saw nor heard, others may tell Of. When
| that amazing uproar broke out far in front
of us, and the mir seemed filed with things
that Kissed. whistled. screeched, and
hummed, tho line halted; the soldiers
stopped from intuition, without orders A
great noise behind us arose at the same
time, and glanced back to see what it was.
saw that Carruth's Massachusetts Battery
had gallopea up, and was unlimbering just
| in our rear. At that instant one OF the
battery horses flew all to pieces, in way
that seemed perfectly inexplicable. The
animal had been struck by a shell, and
scattered in every direction. Right before
our line ran one of the great plantation
bitches, full seven feet deep. that cross
this country. Somebody suppose it was
General Weitzel, our brigade commander
was heard 10 shout above the tumult, "Let
the infantry lie down." We did not need
to be told twice. About three thousand
| men got into that ditch with great prompt
ness; and lying there for the next hour,
| legs. arms, muSkets. and bodies in cOnsid-
cradle of tangle, had fine opportunity
for reflection.
My own thoughts took ridiculous aspect
of the situation. had wished TO par
hcipate in battle. Just as oil green
soldiers do. 1 had pictured it all
out in my own mind, how it would
be-the great volleys of musketry that
we should discharge. perhaps the bayonet-
charge that we should make-the big things
we should do, generally. Well-here we
were, in bat,le-lying in great ditch.
while the artillery of both sides was fight
ing over us!
NV impressions of that hour need not
be lengthy. Fifty pieces of cannon make
great noise, and the continual bursting of
shells in the air, and humming of round
shot, give the thing variety, but do not
lessen it any. The Captain of the buttery
] Just behind US made about all the noise
himself that thought necessary, and con-
tinually yelled and swore Mt his men, rs
though they were not doing all that men
could. BY and by became conscious of q
movement along the ditch on our right;
soldiers seemed to be climbing out; and,
+! correctly supposing that there We're orders
| to do so, our officers repeated the order.
| We got out on the same side that we got in.
Carruths battery was limbering up and
| going to the rear; we were ordered TO form
line and follow. We did SO with some con-
fusion, the enemy's balls still cutting the
air overhead. and ono blowing up the dirt
uncomfortably near our left. We retired
| about half mile over the fields and pre-
pared to bivouac for the night.
The first impression, thatwe had been in
battle and got whipped. was soon dissi-
| pated. We had IN. rely been feeling" Of
the enemy; had drawn their fire. developed
their position, and in the morning should
90 back and open the fight in earnest.
Here we lay in our blankets all night, in
darkness; fires could not be allowed in
such situntion. I recall two incidents OF
the time: One was the receipt of large
mail, out of which We were compelled TO
read our letters from home by the ftful
light of matches. The other was the adj
| 80 oe ctrov m,11e who camc 11DOn the